Are you interested in helping others and saving lives? Then volunteering for the Jackson County Rescue Squad may be both a satisfying and rewarding way for you to serve the community.
Any resident of Jackson County who has been a consecutive resident for three years and at least eighteen years of age is eligible to volunteer for the Jackson County Rescue Squad. Volunteers may do a variety of rescues on the job, such as performing motor vehicle rescues, assisting with transports during severe weather conditions and helping in other weather scenarios, such as snow.
Members of the Jackson County Rescue Squad learn a multitude of skills including first responder training, vehicle extrication, trench rescue, confined space rescue, swift water rescue, diving, responding to hazardous material incidents and farm machinery incidents.
The Jackson County Rescue Squad responds an as-needed mutual aide to the fire department, as well. The primary action they do, however, is vehicle extrications and search and rescue missions.
Each member is required to have a minimum of 36 training hours per year. Current volunteers have served an average of between 80 to 100 hours of training per year in Kelli Richmond’s department.
Richmond, one of the officers on the department for the Jackson County Rescue Squad, has been a full member since 1999. Richmond attested that being a part of the Jackson County Rescue Squad “gives an overwhelming feeling of pride knowing that [she] can do something to help others.”
The majority of volunteers have been serving the Jackson County Rescue Squad for more than five years.
“Right now, it looks like most of our members have between five and 10 years of service. We have some that have been there for 30 years that are still active. The average has been between five and 10 years,” said Richmond.
When asked if most of Jackson County Rescue Squad’s volunteers go into a career related to their volunteer work, Richmond responded that “maybe less than half do.” She adds that most volunteers are “much like [herself]” in the sense that they have full-time jobs in another area.
“We just do what we can,” said Richmond. “Most of us have permission to leave our jobs to assist with any call that we may have.”
The Jackson County Rescue Squad receives funding from the county. However, for them to continue to operate at the level that they are currently on, they need donations from the community.
“Without those donations,” explained Richmond, “we would not be able to provide the services we do.”
Richmond said that the Jackson County Rescue Squad is currently working toward obtaining an ambulance in order to provide more assistance to Medwest with their ambulance services.
For more information pertaining to donating or volunteering for the Jackson County Rescue Squad, call Richmond at 828-586-8926.
